suggestions for beginners!

Oh! I thought you were meaning that you were actually going through an apprenticeship somewhere. My bad.

As for the brain candy tour, I'm a huge Adam Savage fan and would love to see the show/do the meet and greet. That being said I'm always super cautious when meeting people that I idolize because it can sometimes be a let down. I doubt that would be the case with Adam, but I have first hand experience meeting heroes of mine who turned out to be fakes that were completely different/disappointing people off camera. So I guess, just go with your gut?
 
ihave the exact same experience with "the famous folk" haha who they are on screen isnt always who they are in life. though adam seems pretty down to earth and positive.
 
Last edited:
Safety first, then look what materials you feel comfortable working with.

For some, paper and foam is their thing. I like working hard plastics and MDF. MDF is cheap and pretty forgiving and easy to fix. Plastic is not, but there is something pretty cool about holding a finished part in plastic that I have made, willed from an idea.
 
Try out some pepakura! There is tons of armour, weapons and more and once you have made the form you can cover the outside resin to create stability, and then either roto cast/slush cast or lay up with resin and matting and you are good to go! I've done some work with insulation foam too...get a cheese grater!! Its my favourite tool for blocking out shapes :)
 
Try out some pepakura! There is tons of armour, weapons and more and once you have made the form you can cover the outside resin to create stability, and then either roto cast/slush cast or lay up with resin and matting and you are good to go! I've done some work with insulation foam too...get a cheese grater!! Its my favourite tool for blocking out shapes :)

a cheese grater!? awesome! what kind? or will just any do?
 
The difference between a master craftsman and a regular craftsman often is how well you fix your mistakes. You are going to make them. Learning to fix them adds to your growing skill set and often yields new techniques that can be applied elsewhere. And sometimes mistakes turn out to be happy accidents because you end up liking the results better than what you were trying to do in the first place.
Enjoy, the rabbit hole is deep and a lot of fun.
 
poundland took me a second haha, you are from the UK! im a canuck. thanks for taking the time to post the link for clarity
 
I personally would say start with maybe making some foam Halo weapons? Andrew DFT has soom good tutorials and templates for that, my first foam build was an Iron Man helmet, which is also easy to find files for as well. The biggest thing is just start! Don't be afraid to just attempt something, the worst thing that will happen is you will have learned something.
 
I should clarify, imnot officially an apprentice with a prop house or anything i just approach life as a learner. im always an apprentice haha.

sidenote: is anybody going to see adam savages show brain candy? im considering one of the ones here in ontario where you can do a meet and greet. thoughts?

Where in Ontario are you? We have a pretty good local community that would be happy to welcome you into the "maker" world. We get together every year at the Toronto Prop Expo. You can find us on FB. I'm in Burlington and I frequently have folks over to work on builds.

As for starter projects, I always recommend picking up a resin kit and building it. You'll teach yourself finishing and building techniques. Don't rush it, do LOTS of research, and don't pressure yourself to get it perfect first time. Like any other skill practice makes perfect.
 
I personally would say start with maybe making some foam Halo weapons? Andrew DFT has soom good tutorials and templates for that, my first foam build was an Iron Man helmet, which is also easy to find files for as well. The biggest thing is just start! Don't be afraid to just attempt something, the worst thing that will happen is you will have learned something.

this is good advice always! i am moving to a new place in few days that has actual space so ill have room to work, and not drive my lady crazy. haha

Where in Ontario are you? We have a pretty good local community that would be happy to welcome you into the "maker" world. We get together every year at the Toronto Prop Expo. You can find us on FB. I'm in Burlington and I frequently have folks over to work on builds.

As for starter projects, I always recommend picking up a resin kit and building it. You'll teach yourself finishing and building techniques. Don't rush it, do LOTS of research, and don't pressure yourself to get it perfect first time. Like any other skill practice makes perfect.

I am currently in oakville, 43 years old, been doing art in various ways for years, decided to try and get into more hands on stuff. as of nov 15th ill be in cambridge ontario. still though its nice to know there are some builders nearby!
 
I am currently in oakville, 43 years old, been doing art in various ways for years, decided to try and get into more hands on stuff. as of nov 15th ill be in cambridge ontario. still though its nice to know there are some builders nearby!

Wow, REALLY close. I'm in Burlington. :lol

Cambridge not so much!
 
@Michael Bergeron how often does the group meet and where? pretty interested in learning and talking about this stuff

We have one big event a year, usually in August, the Toronto Prop Expo (you can find us on Facebook) but aside from that it's rarely anything official. Sometimes we get a few of us together and work on something.
 
In my industry? The work is very quickly leaving the hands of practical guys and going to the keyboards of digital sculptors and modelers. I can't think of very many big props or costumes recently that weren't designed and often completely executed with growing and CNCing technologies.

My suggestion would be to learn 3D modeling in combination with practical hand skills... favoring the 3D world as it opens more doors IMO.
 
Last edited:
This thread is more than 6 years old.

Your message may be considered spam for the following reasons:

  1. This thread hasn't been active in some time. A new post in this thread might not contribute constructively to this discussion after so long.
If you wish to reply despite these issues, check the box below before replying.
Be aware that malicious compliance may result in more severe penalties.
Back
Top